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Cleansing
CLEANSING a special for rise "I'm going to make sure the Blood Army never rises again. I'm going to give the Twolegplace cats the prey they need. And then, I'm going to return home." '*'note': this takes place between episode four and episode seven of season six. make sure you are caught up in Rise before reading this! Reading Sins would probably be helpful as well, though not mandatory. Cleansing Aleric walked for hours in the Twolegplace before someone finally ambushed him. He made himself walk circles, made himself stroll around as if he had all the time in the world. His lazy stance had finally irked an enemy, and he sensed movement on his right a heartbeat before the cat leapt out from behind a trash can and tried to bowl him over. The brown tom ducked and struck out with his paws, catching the cat with lightning fast reflexes. He pinned the tom down and blocked a she-cat's blow with swift paws before the second cat could land a hit on him. He found himself staring at a beautiful, light brown tabby she-cat. "Hello, Analese." He drawled. The she-cat spat at him. The kindness he had once seen in her eyes had vanished, though not surprisingly, as the last time she had seen him, he had tore out Elena's throat. But the intelligence in her eyes hadn't faded. She had known that she and her male companion would have failed in their ambush, but they had tried anyway. Aleric processed this and gingerly stepped off them, almost casually, just as a third cat leapt out and landed on top of Analese and the tom. Aleric's whiskers twitched as he watched the three cats curse and untangle themselves. "Clever as always, Analese," Aleric commented as he tipped her head at her. "It's good to know the moons haven't dimmed your senses." "And yours," she snarled, her ears flattening. "Rumor says you left, Aleric. Why are you back?" "I thought you missed my charming company." Analese snorted. "The last time I saw you, you killed my best friend." Aleric ignored her, even as a sharp pang of guilt and grief shot through him. He surveyed the tom and the new arrival. "I don't know you two," he mused. "Though I suppose we could get acquainted now that we've had our scuffle." The tom glowered at him. Aleric studied his too blue eyes and swallowed. Oh, he definitely knew who this tom was, even without ever meeting him before. "You're Elena's brother." He found himself nearly taking a step back, but he managed to stop himself just in time. "Yes," the tom growled, "and you are dead meat." Aleric plastered a smirk on his face. "Oh? I'd like to see you try to kill me." The tom lunged for him again but Aleric stepsided him easily and flipped him over. His claws shot out, barely grazing the tom's throat. "Lucien!" He heard the third she-cat scream. Analese's eyes were cold. "Let him up, Aleric. Lucien, don't be so foolish; let me deal with this." Aleric let the tom up and watched as he scooted back towards the other she-cat. "Let's try this again," Analese squared her shoulders. "Why are you here, Aleric? The Blood Army is gone and the High Committee members are dead. You have no leaders to run to and receive your missions. You're nothing but a tom who needs a home. But you know very well that you won't find one here anymore." Aleric cocked his head. Was it not common knowledge that he was the final High Committee member that hadn't been killed? Not that it was important right now. "I have a home," he said quietly. "Then go back to it." Analese sneered. "I have a job to do." Aleric gave her a dead smile. The light brown tabby she-cat raised an eyebrow. "And what, pray-tell, is your mission this time?" "I don't have to tell you that." Analese lashed her tail. "No, I suppose you don't, Aleric, but you owe me something. I long to rip out your throat and leave your heart in pieces for what you did to Elena, but I'll be considerate and leave you be if you just explain why you are back. I have no patience or time for your antics and tricks." Aleric found that facing her relentless anger was very draining. "I am here to destroy the Blood Army." He told her softly but not weakly. "And I am going to get the prey the Twolegplace cats need. The Blood Army obviously has a supply somewhere, and I am going to find it." "The Blood Army is dead." Analese said flatly. "A she-cat named Bryce led an army in and killed them." "No," Aleric let a spark of fire light in his eyes. "I'' led that army--more like a group of cats--in here and killed the High Committee members. Yes, Bryce was among those cats, but I was the one who killed those cats." "Murder was never above you," Lucien hissed. Aleric ignored him. He met Analese's stare. "I am going to complete my mission, whether you want me to or not. You have two choices: you can join my cause so that I am able to return home faster, or you can leave me be and wait for me to save your sorry tails one more time." Lucien bushed up his fur but Analese was the one who replied. "I'm surprised you have a home to return to Aleric. Did you kill all the pretty she-cats there as well? Do you serve another master who makes you a ruthless villain at your new home?" "I kill whoever I need to," Aleric snapped. "And I need to return home because there is a war going on there. I am going to finish my job here and return home so that I may save my friends from a disastrous war." The other she-cat spoke up. "What would we need to help with?" "Gemma, don't--" Lucien started. The black and white she-cat brushed him off and stared at Aleric with pretty amber eyes. "You said you knew Bryce. Is she one of those friends you want to save?" "Yes." Gemma's eyes sparkled with something Aleric didn't understand. "I have always admired Bryce's courage from the moment she stood up against the Vipers and the Blood Army. If you are a friend of Bryce's, then you must possess the same courage. I will stand with you." "I do not have Bryce's courage," Aleric said quietly, "but thank you for offering your support." Analese frowned. "If Gemma will go with you, then I must as well." "So will I," Lucien growled, "if only to keep your filthy paws off my mate. Analese told me what you did to my sister. If you show any signs of harming Gemma, I will kill you." "I'm sure you will," Aleric started to walk away. "And I have no interest in your mate." Analese showed no sign of admitting to Lucien's claims, though Aleric didn't really care. When he had walked away from his friends to defeat the Blood Army, Aleric had begun the process of wiping away his emotions. He let himself be the emotionless cat that Analese had once met and befriended. Well ''almost that cat. He didn't possess any of the kindness that the tom Elena had loved once had. He had erased that too. He had to be a ruthless killer if he was going to do any cleansing in the Twolegplace. The three cats followed him and Aleric felt a small smudge of pride at his work for the day. He had successfully lured Analese into his trap, because he knew the she-cat was watching over the Twolegplace to ensure that peace would stay. He remembered hearing of her participation in the rebellion that had risen after Bryce's first stand in the Twolegplace. "Are you going to explain your plans?" Analese asked crossly as they walked for many blocks in silence. "We are not joining you to be your mindless slaves, Aleric." "You'll know in due time," Aleric replied, not glancing back. "I have matters to attend to. None of you guys are required to follow me; I can find the three of you later when I need your assistance." "You don't 'need' our anything," Lucien snapped, "why did you wait for us to ambush you?" Ah, at least Lucien noticed the trap as well. He wasn't completely stupid, though Aleric wasn't sure how much he respected the tom for his courage to try to attack him. He didn't quite forgive Lucien for abandoning Elena when he fled the Twolegplace all those moons ago. Aleric bet that he only came back because the Blood Army was defeated. Aleric kept his eyes straight ahead, noting that Analese following closely on his right, while Gemma came up on his left. That left Lucien free to stare him down from the back. Aleric could feel the weight of the gray tom's gaze on him. "I'm not undefeatable," Aleric said, "I need help if I'm going to do this quickly enough. Plus, if I didn't wait for you where I wanted you, then you would have interrupted my plans when I didn't wish you to." Gemma shifted in place and Aleric slid his eyes towards her in bemusement. The black and white she-cat didn't seem to hate him in the least. She seemed to be friendly, a trait Aleric didn't know Twolegplace cats possessed. Then of course, if she was Lucien's mate, it was likely she was a forest cat. "How soon do you need to return to your home?" "In a few days if possible," Aleric replied, "there is a war in the forest that I must go help fight in." "The Coalition and the Vipers?" Analese interrupted, drawing Aleric's attention. He nodded once and she watched him carefully. "Rumors say that Bryce resides in the Coalition now and that she has no intention of returning home." "She is home." That was all Aleric had to say. It was true. Bryce was home when she was with her friends, her sisters, and most of all, with Terran. Aleric may not have a privileged spot in her friends' circle anymore, but he would do anything to preserve Bryce's home. It took Aleric awhile to realize that he was letting his thoughts and emotions slip onto his features. He quickly wiped them away, but not before Analese read them. "You really care about your friends in the forest, don't you?" She asked, almost softly, as if she didn't know how to approach this topic. Aleric tightened his lips, aware of Lucien staring daggers at his back, aware of Gemma's patient and curious stare. Most of all, he was aware of the open face that Analese was giving him, as if he had this one chance to redeem his dignity--whatever was left after he killed Elena. "Yes," he forced himself to keep a passive face. "I will do anything to make sure they are safe." Anything for Karina, anything for Bryce. Karina deserved having friends and having a home with her brother as much as Bryce needed that home. Aleric would fight for them because he cared. Perhaps it was a strange feeling, but Aleric knew that on some level, he had always known how to care. He just never had anyone to care about after Elena. "You don't have to hide your emotions like that," Analese's tone sharpened, "It makes people doubt your word." Aleric kept his eyes on the ground ahead of him. "Emotions will make me vulnerable to what is ahead of me for the new few days, next few moons even." For a moment, the brown tom thinks that Analese won't pester him for more, before she says in a soft tone that makes Aleric pause. "What do you fight for?" Aleric halted and stared at her for a long moment. Lucien and Gemma were minding their own business, though Aleric knew they were listening. "I fight for justice." Aleric found the answer waiting in his heart. "I fight for my friends and for who I love." Analese met his gaze evenly, her amber eyes glowing with the intelligence that had once scared him. "I always knew you had a heart in your buried, cold soul." Aleric had to turn away from that before he could feel pain at the bite in her words. "I always had a heart," he agreed, "but it was buried under the shame and grief of Elena." He knew he caught everyone's attention by finally actively bringing up his lost love. Analese's eyes sharpened with interest. "Do you regret what you did?" She threw the question out in the open. "I have to know who you really are before working with you, Aleric. I need to know you won't try to harm my friends." Aleric pushed away the hurt. He pushed away everything, struggling to keep control. Analese saw the struggle and her eyes softened. Aleric hated the look of pity on her face more than he hated himself. "I'm not going to harm your friends. That's not something I would do." A snort from Lucien made him stumble over his next words. "I--I've thought about that day over and over since it happened." Analese waited patiently for him to continue. "I went mad from replaying the image in my head until I was sick of the way her blood ran over my paws, the way her bright blue eyes dimmed forever. It haunted me day and night until Bryce stepped into the Twolegplace and I had something that would thaw the cold that had iced around my heart. There was a she-cat who had been with Bryce's friends. A she-cat who melted the guilt and helped me deal with it." He looked up into Analese's eyes, knowing she saw every emotion on his face. "So yes, I will always regret killing her. I never wanted to." He closed his eyes briefly before opening them again. "I went to her den that day intending to tell her that I wanted to run away with her. That I wanted to risk it, even though I knew that the Blood Army would hunt us down until we were far, far away from the Twolegplace. But I was willing to risk all that just for her, because I couldn't bear the thought of her staying in this foul place and dying because I was too cowardly to risk my pelt for her." He didn't even know he had it in him to say all that. Analese's eyes were not full of pity or sympathy, but of understanding. "That's why you tried to stay away from her after the first day in the grove," she murmured, her amber eyes sad. Aleric found it hard to breathe when he remembered that day and the days that had followed, when he had desperately avoided Elena in an attempt to stop his love for her. He had tried to save her life. Aleric didn't respond. She nodded slowly. "Lead the way," she informed him, "tell us the plan when you must, but please, no surprises." Aleric just started walking, blinking away the tears that threatened to fall. "We are going scouting." ~ Some of the emotion returned to Aleric's face after his confession to Analese, but he didn't let himself be caught unawares around Lucien, who was always looking for ways to sneer at Aleric. It was strange, knowing Lucien, who hadn't even been here when Elena had died, hated him more than Analese did. Gemma was a relief, a calming force between two cats who were constantly pushing Aleric for his motives and reasons, although Analese backed off a bit. They were walking straight towards the Blood Army headquarters, where the High Committee used to gather. Aleric was too busy racking his brain for answers on why he never knew anything about the lack of prey and where the High Committee got all the prey. He had been one of them yet he had never once considered the fact that there had to be a prey supply for the High Committee to threaten the Twolegplace cats with stocks. He was so lost in thought for once that Aleric didn't realize where he was until his paws hit a small gravestone on the ground. Aleric stared at it for a long moment before dragging his eyes slowly upwards. Ice snaked through his veins. "That's Elena's grave," Analese said quietly. Aleric couldn't breathe. It had been eight moons since Aleric had been here. They had both been thirteen moons old when he had fallen in love with her and then killed her. He was twenty-one now. He had first and last seen her here. Analese had buried her right outside of her old den. "Nobody lives here now," Analese continued, "I guess in respect for Elena and her father. And for her grave." Aleric didn't know where they put her father's grave. He didn't know who was dispatched to kill him either; it wasn't Aleric, though Elena's death crippled him for three moons straight. And suddenly he realized that while he had been lost in thought, he had been letting Analese lead him deeper into the Twolegplace. He stared at her instead, trying to comprehend where he was. Ever since her death, Aleric had never set foot in this area for fear of remembering her. Already, her ocean blue eyes were haunting him and he found it difficult to swallow or draw his next breath. "I thought you'd want to see her," Analese murmured. "One last time." Aleric couldn't help what happened next. Instead of apologizing to Elena for her death and his betrayal or screaming at Analese for bringing him here, Aleric just sunk to the floor in front of her grave and cried. ~ It was a little embarrassing for him to stay there and sob for a few hours. At some point, Lucien and Gemma had gone on to continue scouting and try to hunt for some prey while Analese waited patiently for Aleric to stop. He tried to after the first hour because he felt pathetic crying in front of his dead love's grave, but Aleric couldn't get himself to move. Or stop crying. When he finally pulled himself together, Aleric finally let himself fully take in everything. The grave was well kept and cleaned, with a few flowers littering it that looked semi-fresh. "I come by every day," Analese explained, "I...miss her." She admitted. Aleric almost found tears in his eyes again but he managed to croak out. "I'm really sorry." Analese shook her head. "It's all right. I've long forgiven you, to be honest. The cold front was because I was in shock. I hadn't seen you in eight moons and you suddenly popped out of nowhere right after the Blood Army crumbled and for some strange reason I thought you were here to cause trouble." "I've been...around." Aleric sighed. "I don't know how I'm going to do this but I need to get home." "How long do we have?" "Bryce is recovering but knowing her, she'll strike soon. We have one, maybe two days for us to find the prey. I need to get home as soon as possible. I fear the Vipers will strike too soon and I won't be able to help in the last battle." Aleric held onto the belief that Karina would stay safe until he got back. He couldn't lose her, not with Elena in front of him like this. "You said you would fight for who you loved. That wasn't in the contract when Elena found out about your betrayal." Golden eyes replaced the brilliant blue ones and Elena's fur darkened until she became Karina in his mind. "I know," Aleric shook his head, "but I've learned from my mistakes. Or maybe..." he hesitated, "Maybe I love Karina more than I loved Elena." "You were young and inexperienced," Analese reassured him, "I don't blame you for panicking when she tried to kill you." "She would have." "You didn't bring Karina with you." Analese noted. "Was she the dark gray she-cat I saw with you earlier today? She was pressed up against you but I didn't really take note of it. Guess I got used to you being emotionless and very cold." Aleric tried not to flinch. He barely knew how he was going to recover himself. He was already battling his doubts about being alive after Bryce gave him a second chance but putting his dead girlfriend on his soul was a whole new level of torture. "I didn't want her to see me break." Aleric gazed at Elena's grave. "I...I turned myself in to the Coalition and confessed crimes I did against them but Bryce talked the leaders out of killing me. I don't really know who or what I'm supposed to be anymore. But when I came here to get Bryce herbs, and I heard about the starving cats, I had a purpose. Except..." He stared woefully at the ground. "I always knew on some level that coming here might very well shatter me." "Wouldn't her presence help you?" "She's never seen me cry," Aleric snorted. "And Karina deserves to be fighting. I want her to be safe, but I know she'd rather be at home with her brother and helping Bryce win a war. I won't take that from her and knowing she isn't here to watch me break will help me realize that I still have something to live for. And I take it you won't let me destroy myself now that you know I have a war to fight and a she-cat to love." Analese smiled, a warm and genuine one. "You better walk out of this place alive and well, Aleric, because when we're done here I'm coming with you." Lucien and Gemma came back soon after that and by then, Aleric had already dried his tears and straightened. There would be no real goodbyes between him and Elena, he knew, so he turned his back on her grave one last time, telling himself that if he survived this, if he survived the war, he would bring Karina here and tell her everything. But he didn't know if he would actually follow through with that. Aleric was slowly trying to piece himself together, and this time, he left out all the pieces of Elena that had been slicing his heart apart since she died. The light gray she-cat had been the light of his life, but he couldn't hold onto her forever. No, he had to let her go. He felt lighter as he slowly put the pieces together and told himself, this is who I am. This is who I would be if my parents had raised me. The orange tabby had told Aleric nothing. Aleric had dismissed him soon after leaving his friends and now he wasn't too sure where to start. "We found traces of a small stream further down near the center of the Twolegplace." Gemma was telling Analese, "Do you think the Blood Army used that area to keep a controlled stock of prey?" "Water means prey," Analese nodded, "That must be it." Aleric turned over this new information in his head. It was obvious that while Analese led the group of them, she was waiting for him to make a choice. "Let's follow the stream," he decided, "but we must be prepared to meet resistance. There are bound to be cats who believe they can raise the Blood Army again." "Perhaps it'll help if all the High Committee cats are truly dead," Lucien growled, hackles rising. "Someone told us what you are, Aleric." Analese blinked in confusion but Aleric just glanced at Lucien calmly. "Don't worry, after I'm done giving all the Twolegplace cats access to the prey, I'll be leaving. Then you'll have your clean society forever." Surprise flashed in the golden she-cat's eyes as she connected the pieces. "You said you killed all the High Committee members." "I did." Aleric replied. "Yet you are one yourself." "I was," Aleric agreed, "but I don't think I'm one any longer. I think that cat is gone; he was shredded apart by the goodness of others. I came that time to wipe away the stain on the Twolegplace cats and I erased every single Blood Army leader off the board." "And this time?" "This time I've come to clean myself." His voice dropped to a whisper. Analese gave the brown tom a gentle smile. It was a strange, soft look on her face and Aleric couldn't help but feel a knot ease in his chest at her acceptance. Neither Lucien nor Gemma scoffed at his statement; they just stared at him passively. Aleric turned away first; he didn’t want to open up to these cats. It was bad enough that he had torn open his soul to make sure Analese trusted him but he was starting to get exhausted. He was too weary to fend off their questions anymore. All he wanted to do was to go back to the Coalition where Karina would be waiting for him, her golden eyes full of love, her dark pelt enveloping his with warmth. He drew strength from his thoughts of Karina. He had to remind himself that he was fighting for something and that he would achieve it. He would not let the Blood Army rise again; murder, it seemed, had never been above him anyway. Analese tried to talk to him through out the walk but Aleric refused to acknowledge her. He had today and tomorrow, he knew, and after that, he suspected Bryce would strike if she was well enough to battle. He may have promised Karina that he would return, but he knew Bryce. The little black she-cat would never formulate her plans on chance and wouldn’t let the Vipers get any advantage. They were so close to winning the war. Aleric wondered if he should have gone back to the Coalition and dealt with the war against the Vipers first before coming here. He hadn’t even considered it an option when the orange tom had found him and now…Aleric mentally shook away the thoughts. He had to finish his mission. His last one in the Twolegplace before he left this place forever. Category:Fan Fictions Category:Cchen3's Fanfics Category:Rise